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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25712530">Angel of Music</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/theawkwardturtleduck/pseuds/theawkwardturtleduck'>theawkwardturtleduck</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Voltron: Legendary Defender</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Fluff, M/M, Musicians, The Phantom of the Opera AU, Trans Keith (Voltron), Trans Male Character, cw: reference to traumatic injury, musical theater, trans author</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 09:55:02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,015</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25712530</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/theawkwardturtleduck/pseuds/theawkwardturtleduck</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>A Sheith story roughly inspired by The Phantom of The Opera.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Keith/Shiro (Voltron)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Angel of Music</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Thank you so, so much to @mnemnems for being an amazing Beta. She definitely helped me make this more understandable then it was. There is a little bit of extra information that I am going to add to the end notes. I have been sitting on this for to long and finally accepted that I do not have the energy to add more.</p>
<p>If you have any questions about the musical aspects of this fic, please ask! My 3.5 years of a vocal performance degree is being tragicly underutilized at my job as a package delivery drone. You cannot understand how much I love to info dump about music, hahaha.</p>
<p>Mild cw: there is a reference to traumatic burn injury. It is not explicitly described and happened several years in the past from this story timeline. It is still referenced due to the scaring, so heads up if burns are especially upsetting.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When Keith moved into the dormitories of the Old Altea Opera House, he was less than thrilled. At 22, he was grateful for the opportunity to be part of the theater's exclusive dance intensive, but less excited about dormitory living. He had spent his life from 14 - 18 living in a dormitory based children's home, but in the home he had been out. Legally he was still required to stay in the girls dormitory, but everybody in the home went to various lengths to address the situation. Mostly he found himself stuck being treated as both a boy and a girl at the same time. Yes, the girls in his dorm saw him as a boy, but they also didn’t. He was in a strange limbo where he lived, changed, and showered with the girls and nobody thought twice about it, but he was also (thankfully) not invited to participate in the girl talk network, was tormented by the younger girls as a boy, and frequently found himself awkwardly trying to navigate crushes from the girls his age. He went on a few dates, but soon decided that a) dating somebody who lives in the same dorm as you is weird, and b) girls are pretty, but he is gay.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The boys in the dorm across the hall were slightly better, and Keith mostly hung out in the boys dorm until lights out. Most of the boys accepted Keith as one of them without question, but every so often the differences were sharp and uncomfortable for all involved. One particularly embarrassing experience was at school when, as part of a P.E. elective focused on experiencing a wide variety of sports, Keith was paired with his friend James for a section on ballroom dancing. Keith loved to dance and always had, but the guest instructor spoke of the leading and following positions as inherently gendered, and both Keith and James were red faced as the instructor cheerfully worked the class through the steps. They still won the small competition at the end of the section though.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Since the Southern half of the US sucks, and without a legal guardian to consent to HRT, Keith was out of luck when it came to medical transition until he turned 18. Fortunately, the social worker assigned to his case, Kolivan, was supportive and had been handling Keith’s case for the entire four years. Within a week of his 18th birthday, Kolivan had helped Keith legally change his name and gender marker, and Keith had taken his first HRT shot. Keith was able to get a single occupancy unit at Marmora University in Altea, and was able to get his top surgery over his first summer break. By the time he had graduated with a collaborative piano degree and a minor in dance, he had faded into stealth.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>When he found his assigned bed in the male performers dormitory, he made a face at the thought of going back to communal dorm living. The lack of privacy was stifling and though most people did not care what was in his pants, it was a lot easier to forget about when everybody was wearing pants - a practice that several of his dormmates had already abandoned.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith allowed himself one last grumpy sigh and got to work unpacking into the wardrobe next to his bed.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Over the next few weeks, Keith decided that living in the dormitory was not quite as bad as he had feared. A lot of the other guys didn’t wear pants around the dorm, but a lot did, and the bathrooms were all-gender so the stalls for both toilets and showers were private.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He even found that he was not the only trans person. Pidge occupied the bed next to his. They and a boy named Hunk were staying in the performers dormitory while their small apartment was being updated. Most of the full time crew didn’t actually live in the Opera House the same way the performers did, since they worked for the Opera House itself rather than being hired for individual shows. Performers only stayed in the dorms while the shows they were performing in ran. Since they came from all over the world, providing housing for the performers helped avoid hotel mishaps and allowed for more logistical  convenience with large casts.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The days of the dance intensive were long but fulfilling. Keith had difficulty finding time to practice piano, but he found a small dusty room where he was able to set up his keyboard and at least keep himself in practice. The room he found was in a section of the Opera House that was mostly unused. At one point it was office space and a small apartment where the original owner lived, but most of the administrative tasks had been moved to a larger office in another building, and the current owner lived in a house with his family. Keith was pleased with his hiding space.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>A month into the two month long dance intensive, Keith finally felt comfortable enough to start practicing more than just piano.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith had always loved to sing. As a teenager, he had agonized over starting HRT because it was certain to change his voice. His voice had changed, but slowly, Keith was settling into his post T voice and was trying to piece together how to sing again. It was frustrating, discouraging, and frequently disappointing, but he was making progress as he practiced alone in his sanctuary.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Well, he thought he was alone.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>One day, after singing the same four bars of a song almost ten times and sounding different each time, a voice echoed around the room and Keith jumped out of his skin in fear.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You are using the back of your tongue too much,” the voice said. “It’s making your throat too tight to control your pitch...You have a beautiful voice though.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>After recovering somewhat from his shock, Keith spun around trying to find who was listening to him but no one was there.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Where are you?” He asked the empty room, not trusting a disembodied voice. The voice that answered sounded sheepish this time.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Sorry. There are a lot of servant passages that run through the walls of this place. See the grate on the wall to the left of the door?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith looked and saw the grate that he had originally assumed was an AC vent.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“It opens to the passage back here for air flow.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith settled down a bit, still suspicious of the voice, but less worried about his sanity.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“And you are creeping through the servants passages because….?” Keith asked, still defensive from the scare.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Ah,” the voice said. “It’s usually quicker through the passages. And I’m less likely to run into people.” At Keith’s still suspicious silence, he added, “Oh! I’m Shiro. I live here. You can ask Allura if you want.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith relaxed a little bit more. The mystery voice sounded awkward, but not threatening. Actually, now that Keith’s heart wasn’t racing with adrenaline, he could recognize that the voice was actually quite nice. If he knew Allura, the owner’s daughter and one of the dance intensive students, he was probably not dangerous. Keith still planned on checking.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I’ll just...go now...Sorry for startling you, you really do have a nice voice.” Shiro said, and Keith made a small noncommittal noise. Now that he was listening for it, he could hear very faint footsteps fading through the wall.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Later that day during the small amount of free time after dinner, Keith found Allura and asked about Shiro.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Oh!” She said, “You met our ghost!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith made a face and Allura snickered. “It’s okay Keith,” she told him. “Shiro does live here in the owner's apartment. He works for my father and does most of the general upkeep and maintenance that the building requires. Most of the performers don’t know he exists due to his habit of using the old passages and avoiding people he doesn't know. Of course, footsteps and voices in the walls have given rise to some interesting rumors over the last year!” She laughed, “I suspect the crew, and by crew I mean Pidge and their brother Matt, have been helping the rumors along.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith thanked her, feeling much better about the whole encounter.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Now that he knew to look, he could see traces of Shiro around the theater. Sometimes he could hear faint footsteps in the walls, or a disembodied voice muttering or humming, and a couple mild pranks were played on the full time employees.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith didn’t get a chance to talk to Shiro again until a while later. Keith had skipped his practice the day after he first encountered Shiro, but talking with Allura, and later Pidge, assured Keith that Shiro was awkward, but sweet and definitely not scary despite his tendency to show up in unexpected places and keep out of sight when possible.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith was almost disappointed when he went back to practicing and no voices interrupted him.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith did take Shiro’s advice though. He found a series of exercises to help him stop trying to shape his sound with the back of his tongue as much. It was shockingly helpful as far as his pitch consistency was concerned. As the dance intensive neared its end, Keith was setting up his sheet music in his practice room when he heard the telltale footsteps gently echoing through the wall next to the door.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Shiro!” Keith called out. The footsteps stopped and Keith waited. He was about to go back to his practice session when Shiro answered him.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Yes?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Umm,” Keith said, not quite sure what he wanted to say anymore. “I just wanted to say thank you?” He ended up going with. “I don’t usually like unsolicited advice regarding my practicing, but you were right about keeping the back of my tongue too tight. I’ve been working on it and my pitch consistency is getting better really quickly.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>There was an uncomfortably long silence again.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Thank you.” Shiro eventually said, sounding confused but pleased. “You have incredible talent,” he added.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Pidge said you have a lot of training in voice,” Keith told him. Shiro laughed in a slightly self depreciating way. “You could say that,” he agreed.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I’m not asking for lessons or anything,” Keith told him, “but you can give advice if you want. I would appreciate your input.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Shiro was silent for another moment longer.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Would you like lessons?” He eventually asked.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith cocked his head, thinking. He hadn’t really considered taking lessons. As much as he loved singing, he had resigned himself to pursuing it as a hobby only.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I don’t have very much to pay you.” </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“That’s all right,” Shiro told him. “I like your voice, and I like teaching. I miss having other musical people to talk to.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith filed that bit of information away. He knew that Shiro had some sort of formal music education, and he knew that whatever music he studied included voice, but Pidge had been reluctant when it came to revealing any information not directly related to Keith’s first interaction with Shiro. Eventually they told Keith that Shiro was a very private man, and if Keith wanted to know more about him, he needed to ask himself.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith didn’t think now was the time to pry. He could understand wanting to keep your past and present close to your chest. Still, he found it strange that Shiro didn’t have musical contacts despite living in one of the most famous theaters in the world.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Well then, I would love lessons. I live nearby normally so we can still meet here if you want. When would you like to start?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Let’s wait until after your dance intensive,” Shiro told him. “After that, we can figure out a time that works with both of our schedules.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The two exchanged phone numbers and agreed to continue the discussion a week later when Keith was not spending 10 hours a day in dance classes.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>~</p>
<p> </p>
<p>A week later, Keith was packing his suitcase and looking forward to going home. He was lucky enough to live in Altea, but staying in the performers dorm was part of the ~experience~ of the intensive, and as much as Keith hated dorms, he had enjoyed the community of living with the other exhausted students.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>To Keith’s surprise, he had been offered a job at the Opera House. Keith’s job would be to work with the music director of each performance and provide the musical accompaniment for auditions and rehearsals in the months before the orchestra was available. He would also be available for scheduled practice sessions outside of rehearsals with the cast who wanted it. If there was a performance that didn’t involve live music, which was rare considering the theater started life as an Opera House, he would work under Hunk to build sets and manage props. During the show’s run, he would fill any role that needed filling, but would most likely be handed over to Pidge and be assimilated Borg style into the techie crew.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith still didn’t quite believe his luck. He had just been offered his dream job, and was set to start working with the cast of an upcoming production of Wicked. When Keith asked why he was offered the job, the owner had chuckled. “Well, I have been looking to hire a house accompanist for a while now, and Shiro put in a good word about your skill. I’ve learned to trust our ghost when it comes to anything musical.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>~</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Two years later, Keith still couldn’t quite believe how much he loved his job. He got to work with some incredibly talented people for performances ranging from The Lion King to The Sound of Music. He and Shiro had been meeting weekly for voice lessons, but eventually their meetings had turned into jam sessions/hang out and noodle around with instruments. Shiro was still shy, incredibly shy, and always stayed out of sight when they met. Sometimes he asked Keith to stay around a corner, others he would stand in the passages running through the walls while Keith was in a room. Once, when Shiro was showing off his incredible skill on an old organ, Keith had worn a blindfold.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>It was weird, Keith knew. But for some reason it was important to Shiro, and Keith had quickly discovered that he would do anything Shiro asked. Despite the awkward start, Keith and Shiro developed an easy and deep friendship. When they first met, Keith had known that Shiro was well educated musically, but now Keith knew that well educated was only a part of Shiro’s skill. Shiro was the most talented musician Keith had ever met, and he wondered multiple times why Shiro was working at the Opera House as anything other than a musician.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>When Keith got the score for his next show, The Phantom of The Opera, he eagerly got to work practicing and showed up on audition day early enough to have coffee with Shiro before warm up. He left Shiro’s coffee, no sugar extra cream, outside the door to the owner's suite, and went to wait in the room they first met. There was a keyboard in a near permanent set up, the witness and accomplice of many musical shinaganins. When Shiro arrived to his spot behind the grate, he announced himself with a haunting line from The Phantom of The Opera.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I am your angel of music….”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith laughed, The Phantom of the Opera was somewhat of an inside joke to the two of them. They had not missed the irony of Keith learning to sing from a mysterious musician in the walls who never showed his face. Keith had been quick to assure Shiro that he was welcome to kidnap Keith to his candle lit lare any time he wanted. Erik may be a bad guy, but Shiro was the Phantom that every fanboy and fangirl wished they could meet. It was a slightly awkward conversation, but Keith pushed through his blushing and stuttering to make sure Shiro knew that when Keith teased him about being the Phantom of The Altea Opera House, he was referring to the sexy, mysterious, musical genius all the girls in his Musical Theater From The 20th And 21st Century class mooned over, positive connotations only. Apparently Shiro found the comparison amusing, because Matt showed Keith a recent work order which was signed ‘OG’.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Time always flew faster when Keith was with Shiro, and all too soon his alarm was going off to remind him to get down to the audition room and warm up. They parted with promises of a phone call later that night, and Keith hummed Angel of Music on his way to the audition room.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The auditions were time consuming, but fun. The lead actors were hired through an agent and didn’t respond to a casting call, but the chorus and other smaller speaking roles were filled with a local or semi local open audition. By the time the day was over, Keith, the director, and the choreographer had put together lists of who they thought would be a good fit. Two weeks later, rehearsals were set to start.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith didn’t actually get to meet the lead actors until the first rehearsal. When he arrived, very early and still smiling from a meme Shiro sent him, the director waved him over. As soon as Keith saw the two men and two women standing with the director, Keith felt his face do something in shock that was probably not very polite, before breaking into a huge grin. Two of the people he didn’t recognize, but one of the women was Romell, a gorgeous soprano who had been making a name for herself in the theater community. Keith was excited to meet her, but first, he rushed headlong into the taller of the two men, who lit up and braced for impact with a clearly rehearsed motion. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The two men laughed as they gripped each other tightly before Keith stepped away and playfully smacked his arm.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You could have told me you were going to be here you ass,” he said.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Lotor snickered.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“But then I wouldn’t get the joy of surprising you!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith opened his mouth to respond, but the director coughed to bring their attention back. He was smiling, though obviously amused by the reunion.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“These four talented people will be our lead cast,” he told Keith. “Romell will be playing Christine, Lance will be playing Raoul, Nyma will be playing Carlotta, and Lotor will be playing The Phantom.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith went through the proper introductions, explaining how he and Lotor had become close in college, and expressing the proper amount of admiration for the education and experience that the other three told him about. When the other actors and chorus arrived, Keith was excitedly talking with all four about their plans for the show.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Later that night, on a phone call with Shiro that Keith was refusing to admit was a nightly occurrence, Keith gushed about his excitement. Lotor was a voice and theater major where Keith had been piano and dance. Their musical specialties lent themselves to practicing together, and Keith was looking forward to working with his old friend. Shiro was attentive as always and laughed with Keith at his stories of college mischief, but Keith couldn’t help but notice that Shiro sounded a little wistful as they said their goodbyes.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Time passed, and Keith was kept incredibly busy with preparing for the show. Very few lines in The Phantom of The Opera are spoken as opposed to sung, which meant that Keith was helping every single actor practice every single line. It was exhausting, but rewarding work. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The show was coming together nicely when tragedy struck. Just two weeks before opening night, Lotor was in a motorcycle accident. As far as motorcycle accidents go, it was minor. Lotor had an uncomfortable patch of friction burn on his hip and thigh, but his motorcycle pants and jacket had protected him from any permanently damaging road burn. His head was knocked around in his helmet, but as far as anyone could find, a slight bump above his ear and sore neck muscles were the worst of his head injuries. His right arm, however, was broken. The doctors said that it should heal as good as new, but there were several fractures in both bones of his forearm.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>As soon as Keith was able to assure himself that Lotor really was going to be fine, he started stressing about the show. That night at the rehearsal, the director warned the cast that there was a high probability that the show would need to be postponed by several weeks while a new Phantom was found. To everyone's surprise, Romell piped up.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Keith could do it!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith blushed as he felt all the eyes in the room turn to look at him. The director hummed thoughtfully as Romell continued her reasoning.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I know Keith can sing the part because he sings it when Lotor and I have different rehearsal schedules with him. He obviously knows all the music really well, and there is less than a handful of unsung lines he would have to memorize. On top of that, he has been present for all the blocking rehearsals, so even if he hasn’t done the blocking himself, he is familiar with it and will be able to pick it up quickly.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The director nodded along before addressing Keith.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“She is right. I have heard you sing, and you do know the score. The only question is if you can act. I won’t ask you to do this if you don’t want to, but you can fill in for this rehearsal and we can both make a decision after that. Will that work for you?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith felt his face go blank as he processed. The director waited patiently until Keith finally nodded. It sounded terrifying, and he probably wouldn’t switch careers any time soon, but he had to admit that there was a massive appeal to using his hard earned vocal skills, and the Phantom seemed like a fun character. There was only one question.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Who will accompany everyone during the rehearsals?” he asked.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I can do that just fine for one week. We are mostly doing run throughs for practice. You would be the only one learning anything at this point, so I don’t need to be on stage at all times. Next week we begin rehearsals with the orchestra, so I will be able to help everyone with any last minute questions.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith nodded again. “Okay, lets try it.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Everybody got in position for the first scene on the schedule for the night. There were a few hiccups in the first scene. Though Keith knew how the blocking was supposed to look, he had never done it himself and wasn’t as fluid. He also quickly discovered that Lotor made an amazing Phantom in the same way Gerard Butler did. He was refined, precise, and had a regal presence. Keith, however, was more suited to a rougher version of the character. By the time the rehearsal was over, the cast and director were in unanimous agreement: Keith would play the Phantom. Keith, still feeling a little overwhelmed but also excited, agreed.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>That night, on their usual phone call, Keith told Shiro about the sudden change of plans. Shiro was delighted for Keith, and congratulated him on the accomplishment. Through the intense last two weeks, Shiro was Keith’s most ardent supporter. On opening night, Shiro talked Keith through the pre show nerves until he was feeling calm and ready. Of course, ten minutes before it was time to get into place, Shiro decided to drop a bomb.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I….I want to see you. I want to let you see me.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith was shocked. He didn’t know what to say. He knew he had fallen hard for the kind man who always stayed out of sight, but he didn’t know how to go about initiating a relationship without asking to cross a very clear boundary Shiro had set.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Yes,” he whispered, and then much louder, “Yes! Shiro, I would love to see you! I don’t want you feeling uncomfortable though, are you sure?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Yes, I’m sure.” Shiro told him. “When the show is over, you can come by my apartment if you want? I would like to be in my own space for this. I’m scared, but I have been thinking for a long time about it. I trust you. I want you to know me.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith felt like he swallowed sunshine. “I will be there,” he said. “It will probably be really late, but I will be there.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>By the time they finished their conversation, Keith had completely forgotten his opening night anxiety. He was excited for the show, and he knew Shiro was watching from somewhere unseen. Keith was excited to finally be allowed to see, and hopefully touch, the man he was falling in love with.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>~</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The show was flawless. When the curtain closed, Keith was surrounded by cast and crew members in the green room, dancing and celebrating their success. Lotor had been in the audience, and he embraced Keith tightly, being mindful of his bulky cast.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I’m proud of you.” he told Keith. “That was an amazing performance. I know you used to be self conscious of your voice back in school. You have come such a long way.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith smiled up at him in thanks, happily basking in the triumphant mood.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>~</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Later that night, after going home for a shower and change of clothes, Keith knocked gently on Shiro’s door.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Come in!” He heard Shiro shout from inside. Keith pushed open the door to find an empty living room with large windows on the wall directly across from him. To his right was a small kitchen, and to his left, two doors that he assumed lead to a bedroom and bathroom. It was a tidy place, but there was a book left out on the coffee table, a couple dishes in the sink, and a mess of wires under the keyboard set up in front of the window.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith entered and shut the door behind him, standing in the living room and waiting for Shiro to indicate what he was supposed to do. Finally he asked.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Shiro?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He heard Shiro huff from behind one of the doors.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Okay. Before I do this, I want you to know a little bit of my back story,” he said. Keith hummed in acknowledgment and sat on the small couch pushed into the corner of the living room.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“My full name is Takashi Shirogane. Shiro is a nickname that a lot of my friends used in school.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Keith’s eyes widened. He knew about Takashi Shirogane, he was a prodigy. Takashi had graduated from the Garrison Conservatory at 17 years old, and had established himself as a writer, performer, and teacher by the time he was 20. His music had been used as examples of a perfect balance of technical mastery and creative talent in Keith’s composition classes. Keith had seen recordings of his performances, and had been awed by the joy on his face and skill with which he performed. He knew Takashi still wrote and published music, but the man had stopped teaching and performing for unknown reasons.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Shiro continued, “I used to be a musician, but my apartment caught fire and I couldn’t get out. I woke up in the hospital about three years ago and was told I had only narrowly escaped with my life. I,” he paused, considering his words. “I’m not pretty anymore,” he told Keith. “I know I can’t avoid all people all the time, I do need to go shopping if nothing else, but it’s exhausting. Children are scared of me, Keith. I’m so tired of being looked at with fear or pity. Some people can move past my appearance, like Matt and Pidge, but most people can’t see past my skin. I didn’t want you to be like that. At first I just didn’t want to explain, but then I didn’t want to lose you. I still don’t want to lose you, I want to sit next to you while we drink our coffee. I want to hug you before we have to go to work. I want…”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Shiro trailed off. Keith waited until he was sure Shiro was done before speaking.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Shiro, I am so honored that you can tell me this. I promise, you are my friend, my best friend. I will love you no matter what you look like. I'll never give up on you.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He heard Shiro take a deep breath. “Okay,” he said. “I’m coming out now.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>When Shiro stepped out, Keith kept his face as natural as he could. The man before him was tall and well muscled, but large patches of his skin were a mottled mess of scar tissue, and his right arm was stiff with thick layers of scaring. The right side of his face looked like it had been melted, and there was another large scar across his nose. Though most of his hair was long and well tended, the right side of his head had a patch of burn damage about the size of a palm above his ear where the hair wouldn't grow, and a stark streak of white showed at the front of his hair.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Shiro stood for only a moment, letting Keith look him over. He was wearing sweats and a t-shirt, but Keith could tell that the burns continued under his clothes.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I love you,” Keith said. “Shiro, I love you.” He took a cautious step forward, and opened up his arms. Shiro stepped into them and Keith finally held the man he loved. He could feel the texture of the scar tissue under his hands, but it didn’t matter. Shiro was brave, his body was strong, and Keith loved him. He was beautiful.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Okay, since this is a large scale production akin to Broadway, it is completely unrealistic for Lotor to not have had an understudy. Probably more than one. Unfortunately this story follows a basic POTO structure, and I couldn't think of anything that would take out the lead actor and the understudy(s) in a way that would keep it fluffy. In the POTO, Carlotta refused an understudy and that is how Christine got the part. Today, no director would higher her with that contract condition regardless of fame or skill. This is fluff, not realism. ;)</p></blockquote></div></div>
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